WHAT: Masarati, Twin Tigers, The Leadership
WHERE: The Highdive ($8)
WHEN: Tuesday, April 26 at 9 p.m.
It’s probably not fair to say that Masarati has completely moved on after the freak death of show-stopping drummer Jerry Fuchs, because who could? But last year’s Pyramid of the Sun (and their current tour) serve the dual purpose of paying tribute to his memory and moving forward as a band. Fellow Athen’s band Twin Tigers have been described to me (via Facebook) as shoegaze psych-pop.
WHAT: Someone Still Loves You Boris Yeltsin, Santah
WHERE: The Courtyard Café ($4)
WHEN: Wednesday Thursday, April 28 at 8 p.m.
Always good to see The Courtyard Café putting on regular evening shows again, even though that means us old people probably won’t go. Due to their connection to Polyvinyl, Someone Still Loves You Boris Yeltsin play in town quite a bit, so many of you are probably already familiar with them. I don’t remember if this is the first show since Let It Sway came out. Santah, who just signed a deal to re-release WNB (and presumably a new album), open.
WHAT: The New Pornographers, The Walkmen
WHERE: The Canopy Club
WHEN: Thursday, April 28 at 8 p.m.
It’s a rare delight to get the New Pornographers with Neko Case, so C-U should count itself very lucky to get this version of the live band. (No Bejar, but does he ever tour with them? And where would they put all those saxaphone solos?) And we’re also very lucky that this show includes co-headliners The Walkmen, who have a very good track record in the live setting and are touring behind last year’s excellent Lisbon.
WHAT: Daytrotter Barnstormer with Sondre Lerche, Guards, The Romany Rye, Keegan DeWitt, ARMS, and Mike and the Moonpies
WHERE: Kaylx Center (Monticello)
WHEN: Friday, April 29
Last year’s show at the Kalyx Center in Monticello was a HUGE success, so they decided to bring it back again. This year’s lineup is another strong one, but the clear highlight is Norwegian Sondre Lerche, who tosses off catchy hooks in just about every breezy genre imaginable.
WHAT: Arcade Across the Room, Ben Campbell, The Leadership (acoustic)
WHERE: Caffe Paridiso ($5 suggested donation)
WHEN: Friday, April 29 at 7 p.m.
This is a benefit show for Illini 4000, which is an organization dedicated to narratives about the American Cancer experience. Arcade Across the Room is Morton Illinois’ finest “rock, post ska?” band. Ben Campbell and The Leadership keep working hard for good causes, so kudos to them.
WHAT: The Appleseed Cast, A Great Big Pile of Leaves, The Withershins
WHERE: The HighDive ($10)
WHEN: Monday, May 2 at 7:30 p.m.
I admit that I’ve never really listened to The Appleseed Cast as I often confuse them with the Get Up Kids. But thee newer stuff I found on the internets had a nice cascading guitar sound to it. A Great Big Pile of Leaves’ Myspace page says they’re playing at the Blind Pig, which would be awesome. The Withershins, ladies and gentlemen.
As always, it would be ridiculous for me to pretend this is all that is going on this week, so feel free to add some shows in the comments section.